The below is an adaptation of an article which James wrote for the Italian Wine Podcast Blog. The full title is “From Magna Graecia to Gaglioppo – Calabria Reclaims Its Place at the Table”. It describes the fourth day of a seven-day visit to Calabria and Etna, in December 2025. The trip was promoted and organised by Cronache di Gusto, Taormina Gourmet, Surprising Calabria, ARSAC and Calabria Straordinaria.
In August 2025 the Calabrian wine world rejoiced at the award of its inaugural DOCG, Cirò Classico.
Cirò was one of the first wines I ever imported into the UK, so I replied immediately when the invitation to participate in the inaugural ‘Surprising Calabria’ visit arrived.
Calabria is more, of course, than Cirò. It is thousands of years of history and a sumptuous regional banquet punctuated with (properly) spicy peperoncino; it is the Apennines and biodiversity and not one but two seas (the Ionian and Tyrrhenian); it is a vibrant culture and a population known for its warmth and hospitality.
It is all of these things, and more; and it is, as they like to say down there, where everything begins.
🗺️ MacNay Travel & Wine
The Altafiumara resort occupies an enviable position above the town of Villa San Giovanni. From the terrace and breakfast room, Sicily is a stone’s throw away. Open-decked car ferries ply the twenty-minute passage across the Strait of Messina and the two seas meet in a turbulent mosaic of white, blues, greens and turquoise.
The drama of the surface repeats in the earth deep beneath the waters, where complex fault lines generate considerable seismic activity.
The first visit of the day was to Reggio Calabria. The coach deposited the VIA contingent at the piazza outside the National Archeological Museum, where we gratefully took in some winter sun while waiting for others on the trip to arrive. Once inside, in two groups we were treated to a private visit of the Riace Bronzes.
Access was via an airlock which ensured our bodily humidity wouldn’t damage the artefacts.
The two figures, which at 2.20m stand taller than most men, were cast around 460BC (statue ‘A’) and 430BC (statue ‘B’).
📸 James MacNay
For Italian wine, this period is important because it was when Calabria was populated by Greek-speaking peoples in what is called Magna Graecia, Greater Greece. These were ancient Greece’s overseas territories, and, from them, so much of modern-day Italian winemaking stems.
The statues, classical studies of the male form, are of an older and a younger warrior. Although they are fighters, the warmth in their relaxed postures and in the detail of their bodies and bearded visages Michelangelo later captured with David. In their expressions – one younger, fiercer; the other older, benevolent, there’s a deep humanity. It is remarkable to think that these figures spent over 2000 years at the bottom of the ocean. Being in the proximity of such extraordinary pieces, and the history they represent, was bewitching.
📸 James MacNay
The coach returned us to the resort for the afternoon, where our first activity was a masterclass tasting of rare Calabrian vines and old vintages, delivered in English by the entertaining and knowledgeable wine writer, Federico Latteri. I cover the full tasting in a separate post. My highlights were:
To the final presentation and panel discussion with the bigwigs. There were speeches and well-earned applause for the splendid achievement of the extra ‘G’ (in DOCG). But the main discussion, which was impromptu, and which at times became heated, focussed on the identity of the Gaglioppo grape. This marketing conversation concerned the meta versus the micro.
The conversation started with a ‘meta side’ question from the floor: what is Gaglioppo’s identity?
On the face of it, the answer is simple: it is thousands of years of winemaking represented by a flavoursome wine, which works in many different styles and which can be complex and age worthy. Speaking from personal experience – the micro side – I never had a problem engaging customers with these wines. Indeed, Cirò Rosato, Cirò Rosso, Cirò Rosso Superiore – Gaglioppo-driven all – were some of my best sellers. The grape name is charming, the wine is delicious and accessible, and, as far as grape and appellation names go, it is always a pleasure to drop a new one into the conversation.
📸 Fabio Ingrosso
But, on the macro side – and we are talking about actors at trade body, regional or consorzio level – the question is different. To succeed in a promotional campaign for what for most consumers is a new product, a ‘hook’ is needed. The example hook discussed this evening was to compare it with Sangiovese. The two have little in common stylistically, but it at least opens the conversation to the consumer.
As with everything in the world of Italian wine, there is a duality here. Both arguments are true: I’d not want to use my parent’s name in order to get the lucrative job; but, on the other hand, if I were to, I would have the lucrative job. Perhaps, instead of comparing Gaglioppo to Sangiovese stylistically, we could highlight that they are parent and offspring.
Calabrian wine, right now, is on the up. It was a privilege to have been invited on this trip, and I will be certain to return.
📸 Carmen Lezza
